The amount of waste and mismanagement is incredible.
It's the nature of government LJ.. Corruption has always been a part of humanity...
But guess who those hedge fund managers, and other "big money" entities, have been paying off in order to create the kind of financial system (Credit Default Swaps and other derivatives) where they can loot the taxpayers and transfer the nation's wealth from the many to the few?
That's right.. Politicians and government bureaucrats. They may not realize that's been their role, but it has. It's centralization of governmental power for the purpose of enriching themselves and their financial patrons, while exploiting the Citizenry.
It's nothing new... Anyone who reviews the photography of Jacob Riis knows that:
google.com
en.wikipedia.org
And THE ONLY THING THAT MAKES US DIFFERENT IS THAT WE'RE A DEMOCRACY. We also have Freedom of the Press (not that the current MSM lives up to that independence).
That means WE HAVE THE ABILITY to hold our government accountable IF we choose to do so.
It doesn't mean that we're perfect, but it does mean that we're likely LESS CORRUPT than most of the non-democratic governments on the planet.
Btw, I've seen corporate environments which aren't much different when it comes to their entrenched bureaucracies and cliches that hamper productivity.
We're human beings, not machines and therefore the organizations we create, or associate with, will reflect our values as human beings.
As those photos from Jacob Riis reflect, there WAS A ROLE FOR UNIONS that performed a SOCIAL GOOD for the betterment of society. Riis SHAMED the "free marketeers" of the time into recognizing their social responsibility to those who labored to make them wealthy.
I NEVER want to see America return to such a period as Riis exposed.
THAT SAID.. the pendulum of political and economic power is not always even between capitalists and the voting public who make up the labor force.
As Mish has correctly pointed out, public unions have become so strong in some cases that they are no longer providing a reasonable social good to justify their expense That has got to change and the pendulum of economic rights and benefits MUST remain in equilibrium.
But let's not drink the kool-aid in thinking that free markets are some kind of panacea. Free markets will NEVER exist so long as there is a governmental presence corrupted by human greed and driven by the desire to benefit at the expense of our fellow man. Free markets REQUIRE appropriate governmental regulation in order to prevent monopolization of economic power into the hands of the few. Read your history books regarding "trusts" and holding companies and how "free markets" distorted competitive capitalism.
I love this country.. I love it's people, diversity, entrepreneurial spirit, (positive) human values, but most of all it's recognition of the unalienable rights of the individual.
I never pledged my allegiance to any corporate flag. And I gave my oath to the constitution, not some corporate charter.
Corporations, market systems, and capitalist economic theory exist to support this country's prosperity. We the people do not exist to support them.
Hawk |
